The Australian 48 class locomotive with the unbreakable straight 6 251B Alco 4 stroke engine. Filmed in Melbourne, Australia. SSR grain 4MC5 to Henty West nsw. May 2021
Music to my ears. Love those old Alcos Grandfather was a welder here in the States at the Schenectady works. I'm sure he would be happy to hear their cousins are still going strong in Australia 🇦🇺.
I sell sound decoders for model trains on Ebay. When I programmed the sound for a customer's 48 Class I fell in love with it and ended up buying an Auscision 48 Class in HO scale myself and installing the same decoder. I milled the chassis to fit a big speaker which i 3D printed just to be able to enjoy this sound as much as possible. It's art....like a composed piece of musik.
This must be the most perfect sound recorded of a train ever ! Also a credit to the engineers who maintain and operate them. That exhaust is so clean for an engine of that era ! Thankyou from the UK.
Just love the sound of these locos. My Dad was trucking cattle at a siding in Northern NSW early 60s, the driver of 4808 was shunting wagons and allowed me to ride aboard, what a thrill for a youngster. It had a lasting effect I can say. 4809, it's companion, met with a terrible crash into the local fuel depot, but was rebuilt for service. Bulletproof.....
I rode on the goods from Culcairn to Corowa in 1984 with 4814, I was delighted to find the times that I logged and the loco number in an old map. The 40th anniversary was coming up so in January 2024 I toured NSW in my car and visited the places I visited in 1984. I was delighted to discover 4814 in the Junee Roundhouse and got a couple of photos. The other line I travelled on was The Rock to Urana, the guard had to deliver something to Milbrulong and he’d never heard of it. I saw his running sheet, scribbled on “Type of Train” was “Wheaty”.
@@AUSSIETRAINDRIVER In 1984 just before I went to Urana, I stayed overnight at Junee in the hotel type rooms upstairs when it was possible to do so. Someone came to wake me as part of the service in time to catch the “Wheaty” parked in the yard. Pity they closed the line to Oaklands, at the end of Urana there was a baulk or sleeper and there was a standard stop sign mounted on the sleeper. I think a similar arrangement in accommodation existed at Werris Creek.
I have a feeling someone will use this video for sound effects for a train (or trainz) simulator locomotive expansion pack, the audio is JUST SO CLEAN AND CLEAR!
I was actually about to ask if the author would mind in the future. Hahaha I make Transport Fever 2 mods and I'd love to do a 48 one day soon hahahahah
Over in America the Alco S-6 switchers had this particular engine. I sure do love that classic Alco sound. Over here in Canada most Alco's were built under license by MLW with Alco spec's same loco different name.
@@AUSSIETRAINDRIVER How train climb grades can be surprising. 1 in 50 @ Lynton in the Adelaide foot hills. I lived by the line in the 1980s. The slow curves start a bit further up (on the down). Nothing went up the grade @ anything like the 90 KM/H limit, not even express Red Hen, Jumbo's or Bluebird DMUs 60, maybe a touch more was the most out of Bluebirds & certainly less for other DMUs.1 930 hauling 3 cars was the usual Mt Gambier night mixed. This train flew past. Despite a 55 curve @ Mitcham 2km before, this train raced passed at night (making it seem faster) @ at least 80, already going off the power for the slower curves ahead, this made it look so effortless. If I hadn't seen it many times. I would not have thought that a 930 with a light load, could climb grades like a modern EMU (& be throtteling back as it raced past). It's a shame that people today, can't see how diverse and interesting the railways once were.
Good value once again Adam, the 48 class when first built had no exhaust stack, this was added not long after delivery during the MK-1 series, however, the big brother ALCO 45 class never had this addition and stayed as delivered. One of the most reliable and versatile engine loco ever built.
@@thegeforce6625 The driver and co-driver complained of diesel smoke coming into the cab when No:2 end leading, union (AFULE) requested the modification.
@@thegeforce6625 The mod took place in the first few months when new, all subsequent 48's were built with the exhaust stack thereafter. Also the little spinning toilet air vent was added on the number one end hood roof at the same time, just some trivia!
Love that single exhaust note, particularly as it went under the first traffic light gantry, pure white noise & adrenalin!! Must have imported your graffiti artists, we have the same phenomenon in my country of New Zealand. Keep up the good work ! 😎👍👌
Very nice sound. Thumbs up. BTW, if you wanna hear something similar from a very different location, look up the old ČKD locomotives, built in former Czechoslovakia. They are nicknamed "Bardotka" or "Zamračená", they too have inline six cylinder diesels, with similar power. And great sound, too. With similar age, many of them are still in service in current Czech Republic and Slovakia.
What a delight of video, that sound from the ALCO DL-531 is wonderful. I love this locomotive. Here in Brazil there are still several ALCO DL-531 (ALCO RSD-8) in operation and some ALCO DL-532 (ALCO RS-8).
This video makes me remember when I was a child. I use to heard the sound of Alcos 251 passing by the tracks 7 blocks away, when wind was favorable... Thank you for sharing this beautiful video!
Brother, I'm kicking myself for not doing video like this when I was running! Closest I get was a railfan's video shot on a ride along that turned up on a Greenfrog video. I got plenty of stills though! Love this!
Thank you so much for posting this. The 48s have such a distinctive guttural sound. I remember going to the town swimming pool as a kid in the mid to late '70s and watching from the grand stand 48s and 45s shunt. Amazing video.
I love the footage.. thanks. It's a greatly different perspective as I am always on the roads and I can pretty much work out where you are by the bridges as an ex-interstate truckie....
@@hcrun wow that’s awesome I know they’re in India and Russia but never knew Australia. That’s just cool I’m sure it’s based on an American locomotive.
@@LIMowersAndMore They were built under licence because they used Alco parts (frames and prime movers), but their configuration and outline didn't follow any particular American design.
Yeah we had these little Alco M636s that we used to pull a half dozen 4 wheel cars half full of iron ore down to the port for 5, 1/2 days a week. Midday Saturday everything stops until 8:00 am Monday morning. It's the law - Rule Of Law! L. A. W. Baby Jesus won't allow anything else.
@@ThePaulv12 Robe River iron ore also ran several Alco "Century" locos (C636)....highly modified cooling to cope with the heat of the Pilbara. These locos were imported and modified here. www.railpictures.net/photo/279760/
Ol Sooty there sounds pretty healthy. I just did a little research on those things. Pretty cool to have 3 axle trucks on that small of a locomotive. Bet she pulls well for her size! As sooty as those 4 stroke Alco's were they were more fuel efficient than the 2-stroke EMD's of the day at similar HP levels. But Alco's reputation had been permanently damaged by the 244 prime mover for them to ever hope of recovering despite the bullet proof 251's.
It's weird how much of that route looks like the Dallas, Texas area where I'm from. Except I never get to see vintage Alco on the rails here, unfortunately. Glad to see or brothers down in Aus keep the vintage iron rolling. I'd really like to spend a few weeks down there one day if I can afford the airplane ticket.
I know the 48’s are a damn good & reliable locomotive for sure but l have to say l just love the sound of the General Motors EMD two strokers in all its many Vee configurations, ever since l was a kid going to see my grandparents in Chewton when my family would catch the Bendigo train from Spencer Street station in the late 50’s early 60’s, l can remember being awestruck by the sight & sounds of the always B class hauling it, l think the B’s back then also were a bit louder as l think the VR modified the exhaust a bit to quieter them down a little, correct me if l’m wrong, l always thought that the 4 strokers sounded a bit more like earthmoving equipment.👍
Yeah sure mate, but this ONE post is about the little engine that could... and it's the iconic "dinky toy" - known to us who drove plenty of them as the 48er. This forum posts so much EMD content, cut the guy some slack and give us a break, eh!!! You could and probably have, commented on posts featuring 567 or 645 powered GM's as beautiful as they are. Remember, this is just my opinion, but give credit where it is due. Like here. Acknowledge greatness even if you happen to see an ALCO or "half" one as inferior. I could just as easily get started and light this post up about the venerable 44 Class, but it's NOT where this post is aimed at, is it now - as for "earth moving equipment" - I'm just shaking my head man. Kind regards from Tuckomnbil via Alstonville and East Ballina 800km north of Sydney via Eveleigh Running/ACDEP, DELEC, Taree, Sth Grafton and Casino. MATE 🤪🤙
Hit send by accident. Our ALCO RS-1 has the inline turbo charged six cylinder rated at 1000 horsepower. The turbo has been removed so it is down rated to 600 horsepower. Good enough to switch a few cars around when we need to rearrange our yard.
AUSSIETRAINDRIVER 2021 Bad bearings. We still have the turbo wheel, but it was removed when I got there in 2003. I was told they were not able to find any replacement bearings at any of the bearing companies we have in the area, and we have several.
Thank-you for posting still my favorite little loco, Ive driven a few and these ones have always got me out of trouble when l needed them especially on the Liverpool range and out of Bogabri up towards the Rock
Great sounds, bringing back great memories. 80 class heading past towards Blayney past Bathurst West Box, triple 44's on wheat trains heading up Merrygoen hill. Nothing quite like an ALCO diesel idling and going up the notches.
A couple more very interesting things about the long gone Mt Gambier mixed @ Lynton. Once I saw an 830 haul the same pass car & 2 D passenger brake vans. But he wasn't flying up the grade off power. It was on power & doing about 50-55 KM/H, what many railcars would be doing. 830s are the same machine as NSW 48s. This demontrated that despite these Alco branchiners being almost overbuilt, with traction motors the size of mainliners of their era (some 48s had motors taken from 44s, quite early in the 44s life, gearing was a bit low I've heard?), but there are limits to the power a branchline diesel engine can produce (& Lynton showed it). We ain't talking a V20 EMD 710 engine here. A few times triple 900s haul this train, & it also flew past. Movement of locos, often done as extras on trains rather than light engine, was once common across Australia. V/line frequently put 2 Ns on short passenger trains, in the late 80s, early 90s. ANOTHER ASPECT OF THE OLD RAILWAY GONE! Oh, V/line running a few empty vacuum cleaners, fascinating! (My nickname for V/Lo) A 500 class shunter would also march though Lynton on some mornings, light engine. Yet it was going much slower than a 930 & 3 cars, about 45-50 km/h, still faster than the Overland & freight trains though. This movement was to split the up Mt Gambier mixed @ Belair. Unlike the down, which usually did not have freight cars, the up always did. The 500 took the lone pass car & 1 brake to Adelaide Station, while the main loco (usually a 930) took the freight to Mile End. So that would happen about 50 minutes after the 500 went past me on the down. Pass first, freight 10 or so minutes later Today you can watch this line for hours on end & see nothing but suburban DMUs. I don't bother.
Love watching your videos of you filming in the drivers cab it makes me want to drive trains it looks so fun, using those levers to control the train the only lever I would be excited to use is the one for the horn that would never get old. I have been going to Yarrawonga for Easter since I was baby to see my grandmother, she lives near the train line so I get to see some diesel trains which is always fun. These diesel locomotives are so much better than the electric suburban trains, because you can go to rural vic or interstate which would be a good experience to see. I’m curious as well how complex is it to drive one of these diesel freight/goods locomotive is the course you do hard as well do you need to be good at maths and English
Sorry for the long post but you might want to try a game I've played. This post is a review of my findings. Perhaps think about getting Train Sim World CSX Heavy Haul edition for PC. Be warned it is a pretty tedious game IMO and doesn't live up to its potential because of disjointed poorly written tutorials and unpatched or ignored glitches. It's very cheap on eBay (like $10 or $12 or something). It will show you how to operate the controls in a Diesel-electric locomotive better than any game I've played though and sometimes you feel like you're driving a train. Here's the thing with TSW, The visuals are excellent, the train physics top notch and it almost but not quite seems to be a borderline locomotive simulator - albeit poorly explained at times with some complete inaccuracies to boot. For example I believe you shouldn't use Dynamic brake and the Independent brake at the same time because the wheels on the loco will lock due to the double braking action. Game ignores that. Strangely it also completely ignores the Independent brake even though it seems to work exactly as it is supposed to. The independent brake saves using the train brake in certain circumstances - like light engine movement or moving a short train at low speed on level track. All the Independent Brake does is apply the brakes on the loco[s] only. Sometimes you don't want to use the train brake as it causes an air pressure drop along the train length that takes time to recover making shunting take 3x longer per movement than necessary. Stupid stuff like that! Dynamic braking where the the motors on the axles are turned into generators that heat up a resistor bank (huge bar heater with its own fan usually on top of the loco) and create an electrical retarding of the train esp useful on long descents to avoid heating up the brake blocks and depleting the brake air in the train brake system are ignored in the tutorials, but you guessed it, works as it should in the prototype - even down to being shown on the amp gauge. For the most part (apart from the tedious but necessary tutorials with very crappy reward for effort scenarios) it gives you a lot if you want to know how to drive a locomotive. Unfortunately it has a lot of glitches too. Starting the engine is very glitchy and unless you can actually get the damn thing running you can't do that tutorial - arghhh! Later on in the game after the never ending repetitive boring tutorials some triggers in scenarios fail AFTER TWO HOURS of effort - rage quit stuff. Back to the tutorials, the importance of the amp gauge is ignored however it does work and looks to be accurate. The amp gauge is very important but perhaps not as important as the air pressure gauges which directly indicate the status of the trains brakes. I don't know enough about Westinghouse train braking systems however I know enough to know that air pressure management is a top priority and the gauge response to brake application and release seem pretty accurate to my fairly limited knowledge. The rise and decay times of the air in response to the handle movement (brake release or application) varies with length of train. TSW teaches the player about time management and efficiency in control use pretty well in some areas but poorly in others (as mentioned re Independent brakes). These are all things you'd learn as a real loco driver but it takes a really long time because there is so much to know. The signalling part of the game is lacking. Signalling is a huge part of driving a train, rail operation and that's on double track. Single track signalling is another complete topic! Signalling rules and regulations are huge and they are not standard almost anywhere in the world. TSW ignores most of signalling. Problem is it neither game nor sim but a bit of both and does neither particularly well. The sim part of it is let down by the ad hock approach of teaching an interested gamer even though it seems accurate give or take as mentioned. Again the train physics give the player a good feel of the mass of a long train esp starting and climbing a grade. Even the point blades and frogs are modeled on the switches. There is quite a bit to like but flawed for sure. What would I give it out of 10? Hard to say. Enjoyment 1/10, tutorials 1/10, scenarios 4/10, realism 8/10. As a whole?? 3/10 LOL.
Three different Aussie bulldogs and three aussie Alco 48s on that train. It doesn't get much better than that in 2021. Australian made aside....Are there many places in the world where you would get classic EMD bulldogs and Alcos both on a mainline train?
Atm doing it on my phone so memory space is half the battle as I have to upload every 5min clip., I'll see if I can do a dark screen full length vid but no promises. I've thought of doing an EMD and or alco dark screen recording of the sounds, so I'm working on it. Eventually I'll have a decent editing pc again.
@@AUSSIETRAINDRIVER No wukkas, I wish you luck in editing and uploading the vid 😁 (out of curiosity, you planning on getting a laptop or desktop for editing?)
@@AUSSIETRAINDRIVER Good idea, what PC or laptop are you thinking of getting? (And a rough budget estimate, if your comfortable with sharing that here)
The sound of grunt, what would be the rev range and cubic capacity? The sound reminds me of a kero powered Twin City tractor, slow revving and full of grunt (on a different scale of course, lol).
@@AUSSIETRAINDRIVER Wow... I'd honestly expected way more... Guessing its still way more economical per tonne/km. Keep up the great work, love your vids!